It has long been desirable to produce knitted garments having sufficient stretchability and recoverability to properly fit several body sizes and it has been the common practice to produce such garments by knitting the garment of a synthetic yarn which has been textured or crimped to impart stretchability thereto. U.S. Pat. No. 2,706,389 discloses a full-fashioned panty which is knit throughout of such crimped synthetic yarn and the panty blank is shaped during the knitting process to generally conform to the configuration of the lower body of the wearer. The panty disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,706,389 has sufficient stretchability and recoverability to fit several body sizes, however, the crimped synthetic yarn does not provide the panty with the moisture absorbing and comfort characteristics of a panty knit entirely of cotton yarn.
In an effort to provide a stretchable cotton garment, U.S. Pat. No. 3,132,497 discloses several different types of stretchable garments knit exclusively of cotton yarn. According to this patent, the garment blank is initially knit with unusually large or loose stitch loops throughout the main body of the garment and the garment is then treated with a caustic soda solution to swell and shrink the yarn and thereby reduce the garment to the final desired size. The type of garment disclosed in this patent has sufficient elastic or stretchable properties to fit several body sizes. However, it has been found that after wear and laundering, the garment does not return to the shrunken original condition if the garment is hung up to dry and therefore the elastic or stretchable characteristic is lost or greatly reduced. Also, the caustic soda treatment requires an additional step in the manufacturing process and thereby increases the cost of manufacture.
In an attempt to provide stretch and to retain the desirable characteristics of cotton, U.S. Pat. No. 3,477,257 discloses the formation of an elastic fabric by knitting single courses of a cotton yarn alternating with single courses of a crimped synthetic yarn. The courses of crimped synthetic yarn provide stretchability to the fabric and the courses of cotton yarn provide the desirable properties of feel and absorption. However, garments formed of this type of fabric are difficult to dye to a uniform color because of the different affinity for dye of the cotton and crimped synthetic yarns alternating throughout the garment.